Falling Inside the Black
by MistoryStar
Summary: After a run in with a serial killer, Ichigo is left dead and blind. 70 years later, Ichigo accidentally gets himself re-involved with the shinigami. How will this story unfold? Read and find out! Rated T For swearing
1. Prologue

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Bleach, Kubo Tite does. If I did then this fanfiction would be cannon XD**

* * *

_You never know what is going to happen next, on second you can be laughing and the next… your dead._

* * *

_Prologue_

I was walking home with Tatsuki laughing over something I can no longer remember when suddenly we were both knocked out.

When I came to we both tied to a chair on opposite sides of a dusty old room. Both of our mouths were gagged and the rope was so tight that I could feel my arms going numb. Whoever did this must have wanted to make sure that escape was impossible.

My attention was averted away from the rope holding me prisoner by a man with greasy hair pulled into a low ponytail walking into the room. The man was wearing an eerie grin that reminded me of my inner hollow. There was most definitely something wrong with this guy.

Tatsuki was still unconscious, so he came over to me instead, stopping a foot in front of me. I meet his eyes and was once again reminded of my hollow; all I could see was pure insanity.

"I see you're finally awake, kiddo," he said, grinning down at me. He glanced in Tatsuki's direction and seemed to be pondering something before continuing. "Girlie over there is still seems to be out of it, so I guess we'll have to start without her, eh?"

My entire body tensed. Start what? What the hell is this bustard going to do to us!? I was dragged from my thoughts by the all too familiar sting of a blade slicing my cheek, which sadly confirmed my suspicions… This guy was going to murder us.

As soon as the thought processed my body went on auto-pilot. I immediately started thrashing around in an attempt to free myself from the rope that bond me to the deathtrap of a chair. This seemed to amuse the man for he started to grin even wider. "You do know that trying to escape is useless, right?" he told me before thrusting his blade at me a second time. I instinctively jerked my body to the side without thinking in an attempt to avoid the knife, but I only ended up sending me, and the chair, flying towards the floor.

I winced as my head made contact with the cold concrete floor. My vision started to black out slightly and I could feel blood pouring from my head.

I felt a sharp jab in my shoulder as the man kicked me with one of his steel-toed boots. "You have some pretty good reflexes, kiddo. Guess I'll have to restrain you a bit better so this won't happen again." He gave me a mocking grin. "We wouldn't want to you hurt yourself even worse, know would we."

I looked across the room only to see Tatsuki staring at me wide-eyed. There was something I'd never seen her show before flashing in her eyes; fear.

I was shocked by the man pulling the chair upright and dragging me and it towards a column in the very middle of the room, and even more so when he started to wrap a chain around me, binding me and the chair to the column. Fucking great.

By then I was pretty pissed off at the bastard, so I did the first thing that came to mind, I smashed my foot on his using all of my strength in the process which-considering how strong I am-most likely broke every bone in the guy's foot.

That is all it took. Whatever torture he had planned for me vanished; instead he grabbed the closest thing to him, a huge pipe, and bashed it against my head.

Everything went black in that moment and I could hear Tatsuki's muffled scream as I felt my life slip away.

When I woke up in the Soul Society two things had changed: I was dead, and I was blind...

_Prologue__ End_

* * *

_**An: Short, I know, but this is just an introduction so it doesn't matter! .**_

_**Ichigo: Keh, evil fangirl, I can't believe you blinded me!*glares***_

_**An: You can't glare, your blind!**_

_**Ichigo: Shut up, I'll do as I please!**_

_**An: Well anyways...**_

_**Together: REVEIW! **_


	2. Lost

_**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Bleach, Kubo Tite does. If I did Ichigo and Rukia would've kissed a long time ago **__**XD**_

* * *

_70 Years Later_

Wheels on a cart turning. Children laughing as they run by playing some silly game. A dog barking. People idly chatting with each other about the nice weather. I can hear everything and more within a couple yards of me.

Now then… if only I knew where the hell I was. I sigh, when will I learn not to wander around aimlessly by myself!? Geeze, guess I'll have to ask someone for some help.

I walk over towards the sound of a small group of girls talking, going slowly to make sure I don't run into or trip over anything. I reach out and I feel a girl jump and turn around when my hand brushes against her shoulder. "Excuse me, but could you do me the favor of telling me where this is?"

I hear the girl breathe in sharply from shock and I hear another girl mutter "He's blind." I know for a fact that they're staring at me, and it is _really_ pissing me off. If I wasn't lost, I would just walk away, but I am lost so I just continue to stand there and endure the staring.

"Umm…" Why is she hesitating? It's not like I'm going to attack her, geeze! "To be honest, we don't know where this is, either."

I can't help feel a twinge of annoyance. "Then I take it that you girls are lost, too. Great," I say as I run a hand through my spikey waist length hair.

"We sure are!" I hear another girl happily respond- I think she's the one who commented on me being blind. Wait, why is she so happy, this is not something to being happy over!

"Well then," A third girl starts. "Since both you and the three of us are lost, I suggest we form a party. We help you, and you help us, deal?"

"Better than nothing, I guess," I say, annoyance clear in my voice. "I'm Kurosaki Ichigo."

"Kishimoto Yui!"

"Kishimoto Rei." Same last name, they must be sisters.

"Harima Ai."

That's weird, I could've sworn I've heard those names before…

I'm startled from my thoughts by one of the girls grabbing my hand. "Umm… come on, Ichigo-san, we're going know," she states nervously as she starts to lead me.

"You do realize that I can walk by myself, right?" I really do hate for people to view me as helpless.

"Oh, sorry," Rei says, dropping my hand.

"Considering the fact that he is lost, not to mention blind, I think he should let one of us guide him before he get himself even more lost," Ai smugly remarks with a bit of humor evident in her voice. I feel a vein pop in my forehead. I really can't believe she's taunting me on purpose, she's worse than…

Raven hair. Violet eyes. Pale skin. Petite body. Sweet yet cocky smile… I shove the memory away before it can do any damage. I mustn't think of someone who is so far out of my reach, because if I do I'll be tempted to go find her and… that is just something I can't allow myself to do.

I am once again dragged from my thoughts by someone grabbing my hand. "Damn you zone out easy, no wonder you got lost." Ai.

"Shut up," I retort. "Really, I'm fine, I don't need any help."

"Stop complaining, it's like I said earlier, if one of us doesn't lead you, you'll just get more lost. Now come on." I don't try to resist her as she pulls me after her simply because she- no matter how much I hate to admit it- has a point.

"So, Ichigo-kun, which district are you from?" Yui asks me in total happy-go-lucky fashion.

"Zaraki," I mutter barely loud enough for her to hear. It just so happens to be the same place Kenpachi is from.

"Zaraki? Isn't that place mostly made up of ruffians? How the heck are you still in one piece!?"

"That is because I just so happen to be an excellent fighter," I reply nonchalantly.

"You seem so gentle, though. I can't really imagine you fighting," Rei mumbles from my side. Where the heck did she get the impression of me being gentle, does being blind really make me seem_ that_ harmless?

"Really, Rei-chan? I can, I mean look at these muscles!" Yui yells while grabbing my unoccupied arm and pulling up my kimono sleeve. I sigh. Could these girls _please_ stop grabbing me like this? I'm kind of a no-touchy kind of person.

Suddenly, as if it were planned, all four of our stomachs growl in perfect sync, therefore ending the conversation over how gentle I supposedly am.

"That's right," Yui says. "I haven't eaten all day." Her voice sounds lower down than it originally was, so I take it that she is know crouching.

"Same," Ai says, sounding slightly depressed.

"Then what are we waiting for, let's go find something to eat," I say.

"We don't have any money on us, we left it all at home," Rei says, sounding embarrassed. What kind of people go out and don't bringing any money with them?

I sigh. "Fine, I'll buy our food, but it better be cheap. I'm not exactly what you would call rich… Well, what are you girls waiting for, go find a restaurant, I can exactly do it." And with that Yui and Rei went running off towards the promise of food while Ai and I calmly followed.

* * *

As a waiter, or waitress- I honestly can't tell which- sets the food down in front of us I can feel my mouth starting to water. What? I haven't eaten since early this morning and the food smells pretty damn good.

One of the girls, Yui I think, hands me a bowl already filled with food and some chopsticks and I mutter a thanks.

"This is delicious," I hear Rei say in total awe.

I eat a piece of beef. "She's right, this is pretty delicious." It kind of reminds me of Yuzu's cooking…

"Oh my gosh, this is amazing!" Yui yells from across the table.

"Oh… wow," Ai says.

We eat in silence for a while as we savor the food. Suddenly, something dawns on me. "You know, I told you where I was from, but you girls didn't tell me where you live, or how you got lost."

"We live in the Seireitei, and we got lost when we decided to go out and explore the Rukongai."

Oh shit, now I know where I heard their names. Kishimoto and Harima are the names of two _very_ important noble families. Not _as_ important as the Kuchiki family, but still pretty well known none the less.

SHIT! I've been trying to stay as far away from and have nothing to do with the Seireitei for the past 70 years, and now, if I say or do the wrong thing in front of these girls, _everyone_ will know my whereabouts. Currently the last thing I want is to have anything to do with the shinigami. Some mess I've got myself into this time. How the hell am I going to separate myself from these girls _and_ make sure they squeal on me? Geeze.

"Ichigo? Are you ok? It looks like something's bothering you," Yui says, sounding genuinely concerned.

"Huh? Oh, I'm fine. I guess I was just spacing out again, haha." I rub the back of my head and try to laugh in an attempt to make all evidence of my previous displeasure vanish.

"That's the third time in the past hour, it's no wonder that you got lost," Ai says. Why must she feel as if she must taunt my constantly?

"Kiss my ass!" I yell in her direction. "Besides, you also got lost." I smirk.

"No," she corrects me." _I_ didn't get lost. Yui and Rei got lost and they just so happened to drag me with them."

"Same difference," I retort before finishing my rice.

I hand Rei my wallet. "Take out enough for the bill plus a small tip for the cook."

"Ok…" I hear her place the coins on the table before she puts the wallet back into my hand, which I promptly shove back into my kimono.

"Alright then," I say as begin to stand. "I think it's about time we goodbye to each other. I mean, if we're headed in opposite directions, then there is no use in traveling in a group." There's that and the fact that the sooner I get away from anyone associated with shinigami or the Seretei, the better things will be for me.

"EH!? You're leaving us!?" Yui screams at me.

"Are you sure you'll be ok?" Rei asks me calmly, however, from the sound of her voice I can tell that she too is upset.

"Yeah, I'll be fine," I reply. I feel a little guilty for dumping them like this, but there is really no helping it. I _cannot_ risk being discovered.

We all stand to leave the building, but we pause at the doorway."Hopefully we'll meet again, Ichigo. Good bye," I hear Ai say before I hear the sound of their footsteps getting further and further away.I feel a twinge of loneliness and I have to fight the urge to follow them.

I try to divert my attention to the temperature instead. It is much cooler than it was a little while ago, it must be getting dark. That means I'll most likely have to find someplace to stay the night.

I sigh as I wander off in the direction opposite of that of the girls in an attempt to find shelter.

* * *

_**An: Epic first chapter? You know it! XD **_

_**Ichigo: You really do have gloating issues...**_

_**An: Do not!**_

_**Ichigo: Do too!**_

_**An: Whatever, anyways...**_

_**Together: Review!**_


	3. Encounters

**DISCLAIMER: I do no own Bleach, Kubo Tite does.**

* * *

_Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump._

"What. The hell… Is That Friggin' Noise!?" I yell, completely feed up with the ever so annoying noise that has woke me up several times already.

_Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump._

It sounds like it's coming from outside my room. I stand and make my way to the door so I can find out what is causing that infuriating racket.

As soon as I slide the door open, I'm overwhelmed by the smell of soap. I take a step out of my room and I instantly regret as I slip and bang my head on the slippery wood floor. "Dammit!" I swear as I sit up and rub the knot forming on the back of my head.

I hear footsteps running towards me. "Oh my God, are you OK?" A woman asks me. "Couldn't you see that the floor is wet? You really should pay more attention to where you're going."

I tilt my head in the direction of her voice. "For the record, I couldn't have seen the floor if I tried." I rub the goose egg on the back of my head. "And I hate to be rude, but this is mainly _your _fault. I wouldn't have left my room in the first place if you weren't being so loud with your-" I breathe in the strong scent of soap. "Cleaning."

The woman is silent for a moment. "Wait a minute, you're… Oh my God, I'm _so_ sorry. I didn't realize you're, um, you know…"

"Blind? Don't worry it's fine," I tell her as I stand, brushing myself off. I don't feel like talking to her anymore, so I turn and step back into the safety of my room. I tell the woman that I'm going back to sleep and that I'd appreciate it if she didn't wake me up again.I crawl back onto my futon and bury my face into the warm blankets before falling into a dreamless sleep.

* * *

"Still sleepy," I mutter as I walk out of the hotel.

I hadn't planned on staying lost this long. I sigh before pulling out my wallet and weighing it in my hand, It's extremely light. I sigh again. Well this is great; I've been paying out of my ass since yesterday so that I can eat and have someplace to sleep and because of that, I'm almost broke. I slide my wallet back into my kimono.

"I'm probably going to have to go without food for a while so that I can pay Okami-san rent," I mutter. I'm getting more and more depressed by the moment. "Dammit- GAH!" I suddenly find myself on the ground eating dirt. "The hell!?" I feel something slobbery lick my foot. I sit up and slowly turn to face the offending animal. "I ought to skin you, you mangy mutt," I hiss at it.

This is most definitely an off day. First I almost knocked my brains out on a soapy floor, then I get tripped up by a stupid dog that just so happened to walk in front of me. This day couldn't possibly get any worse-I suddenly feel the presence of an eerily familiar reiryoku. Hirako Shinji…

"Shit," I swear. He's so close; he's probably going to notice me at any given second. What the hell should I do? If I run I'll probably attract his attention. I guess my only option is to sneak off and hide… How the hell is a blind person supposed to hide!?

"Ichigo?" From the sound of his voice, I take it he's only a couple yards away.

My entire body stiffens and I quickly use shunpō to escape.

* * *

Two hours… I feel a vein pop on my forehead. I've been hiding under what I _think_ is a broken cart for over two hours and it's all that bastard Hirako's fault! Why do I say this? Simple, after he spotted me, the amount of shinigami in the area increased tenfold. He must've gotten reinforcements…

"Where'd he go?" Speak of the devil. "I couldda sworn I saw 'em take off in this direction." I hear his footsteps stop right in front of my hiding place and a bead of sweat trickles down the side of my face. I stop breathing.

"Captain! We have to get back to the Seireitei, a meeting has been called!" Hinamori yells from nearby. Hirako remains in his place before me for a moment more before shunpōing off.

I sigh in relief as I crawl out from under the cart. I stretch, cracking my back in the process. I reach out my reiatsu over the area… There are _way too many shinigami in the area for me to walk out. I guess I'm going to have to use shunpō again. I sigh. I really hate using shunpō, it's a million times worse than running, which, I might add, usually turns out pretty bad for me, I usually end up tripping. Not to mention that I get lost in the process. But then again, I'm already lost, so I might as well go ahead and use it. I just hope I don't smash into anything…_

* * *

I know it's night by the time I get back to Zaraki because of the dramatic drop in temperature and the eerie silence.

"Dammit," I swear as the cold bites into my bare feet. I hate winter.

I hear Chiba's voice from inside a building to my right. Good, now I know _exactly_ where I am. I make a left and walk close to the buildings, keeping my hand on the walls until I come across the sign beside the door of Okami-san's hotel. She carved patterns into it so that I can tell if I'm a right place shortly after I moved here a little over thirty years ago. The second I walk in, I instantly regret it due to the chaos going on in the lobby.

"_Ritsu_! I'm going to kill you! Mama just bought me this kimono and you spilt tea on it!" Ayame yells.

"It was an accident, and look, the stain isn't that big. You might be able to- Hey, Ichigo's back!"

"Ah. Where have you been? You've been gone for a couple days," Ayame says.

"Bet he got lost again," Ritsu mutters.

My eyebrow starts to twitch. "I dare you to say that to my face, you little brat."

"Oops. I wasn't supposed to say that out loud." He chuckles nervously.

"Well then, do me a favor and keep those annoying thoughts of yours to yourself," I warn him.

"Geeze, Ritsu, when will you learn not to provoke him?" I take it that she's already forgotten about her ruined kimono… That or she's just waiting until I leave to pick up where she left off.

"So," I say as I step closer to the siblings. "Where's Okami-san?"

I hear clothing rustle a little and I feel a vein pop. "Ritsu, I swear that I'm going to beat the crap outta you if you just shrugged…"

"He shrugged."

I cuff Ritsu on the head before I can stop myself.

"Ow!"

"How many time have we had this discussion!? I cannot understand body language, I'm _blind_. The only thing you accomplish by shrugging, nodding, or doing whatever else you do is pissing me off!" I cross my arms.

"S-sorry." He pauses for a moment. "Ow. Was smacking my upside the head really necessary? You could've given me a verbal warning or something."

"I've tried that and it doesn't work with you. I figured pounding common sense into that thick head of yours might work a bit better," I tell him as I mimic knocking myself in the head with my fist.

"Wait, that's not fair. You can use body language but I can't?"

I cuff him a second time. This kid needs to get a better brain. "Just- Never mind. If you guys see your mom, tell her that I need to talk to her," I say as I start towards my room.

"Okay. Goodnight, Ichigo," Ayame tells me.

I enter my room and close the door behind me before lowering myself onto my futon and sliding under the thick blankets. I'm not tired, but I try to sleep anyways simply because I have nothing better to do. After laying here for about an hour, I sit up and groan. "Dammit!" I stand of walk around my room randomly. One of the major downsides of being blind is that there's not much I can do on my own to keep myself amused. I groan again before letting myself fall onto the cold floor with a loud _thump_. "I'm so fucking bored!"

I hear my door slide open. "The hell are you doing? You've been making so much of a racket that I assumed you were trying destroy you room. Speaking of which, you could really use some light in here."

"Get out, Gonzo! Go pester someone else!" I yell as I throw my pillow at him. I hear it hit the wall.

"You missed me, Ichi. Better luck next time," he taunts before running off. He really does enjoy pissing me off, doesn't he? I wait a couple of minutes before going out into the hall and retrieving my pillow. I toss it back into my room before making my way back into the lobby.

"I thought you went to bed," Ayame says as I enter the room.

"I got bored and Gonzo was trying to torture me. What time is it?" I ask her.

"Somewhere around eleven, why?"

"I was just curious," I reply as I start to rock on my heels.

The front door slides open and I slightly turn my head towards the sound of someone walking in. "If you need someplace to stay, you're outta luck, our mom isn't here," Ritsu tells the person, or people, I can't really tell. "What a minute, you're a-"

I'm slammed against the wall before I can react. "I found you!" That voice!

"Dammit, Kenpachi, let go of me!" I yell as I try to free myself from his iron grip on my wrists. Out of all of the people I could have run into, why him?

"So Hirako _wasn't_ lying about seeing you, though he didn't mention that you were blind," He says, completely ignoring what I just said. The bastard is probably grinning ear to ear right now. "Ow! The hell, woman!?

"Let. Him. Go," Okami-san says in a warning tone. I groan. She, as per usual, has horrible timing. If she pisses him off, things will get even worse.

"Huh? You'd better not be talking to me." Too late.

"Yes, I'm talking to _you_. You'd better let go of my tenant and get out of my hotel before I take the sword of yours and shove it up your ass," she threatens him.

"Okami-san, shut up, you're not helping," I hiss at her.

"What's with all the racket out here- Ah! Why is Ichigo pinned to the wall by a shinigami!?" Gonzo yells in a startled voice.

"Kenpachi, release me now and I'll spare with you," I say.

"Ah, so you want to have some fun, then. I've been looking forward to a rematch with you for almost seventy-three years. Heh. I don't care if you're blind, you'd better put up a good fight because I'm not gonna go easy on you!" He releases my wrists and I dash past him and out of the building. I hear him follow after me.

I hear the faint whistle of his zanpakutō cutting through the air near my right shoulder and I side step it before twisting on my heel and kicking him in the back. I hear him land several feet away and I take the opportunity to focus my reiastsu on my right hand, summoning Zangetsu. I usually fight using martial arts, but a fight with Kenpachi is going to require a blade.

_It's been a while since you last called me out_, Zangetsu says, his voice echoing in my head.

"Yeah…"

"Damn. I've got to admit, that was one hell of a kick," Kenpachi tells me while laughing like the madman he really is.

"And I can do worse. Are you sure you want to fight against me?" I ask him, hoping he'll back down and leave me alone, though I know how unlikely that scenario is.

"Nah, I'm having too much fun!" He yells before charging towards me. I hear his zanpakto swing down from above and I parry it with Zangetsu before forcing him backwards a couple steps. He immediately attacks me again with one swift slash after the other, his speed increasing with each attack.

"Shit," I swear as his blade bites onto my left cheek, leaving a small cut. Kenpachi pauses for a brief moment, giving me just enough time to shunpō backwards a couple of feet. I didn't want to do this, but he's going to kill me if I don't. I fire a Getsuga Tenshō in his direction. It's strong enough to hurt, but weak enough to not kill him, at least, I hope it is. I hear a loud clang as he tries to block it with his zanpakutō, but he must fail because I hear his blood splatter on the ground a couple seconds later. His breathing gets very heavy, but as far as I can tell, he's still standing; at least he was for about another minute. His body falls to the ground with a _thud_ and I send Zangetsu back into my inner world before running over to him.

"Get… You weapon… Back out. Our fight… Isn't… Finished," he tells me, gasping for air between words.

"I hate to break it to you, but our fight _is_ over," I say as I kneel in front of him. "How did you find me?"

"It was… An accident," he barely manages to reply. From his breathing and the strong sent of blood, I think he's close to killing over. Dammit. I was going to fight and run, but I have the feeling that I'm going to get a serious ass kicking from karma if I leave him like this.

I sigh as I wrap my right arm around his waist and pull his left arm over my shoulder. "C'mon, I'm taking you back to the Seireitei."

"I don't… Need… Your help," He says.

"Can you stand?" I ask him even though I know he can't.

"Yes… Let… Go of me."

"I will if you can prove to me that you're fine," I challenge him. He still doesn't budge. Time for a change of plan. I release him for a couple seconds so that I can move in front him and ease him onto my shoulder. I stand and he immediately starts to protest.

"Put… Me down. Didn't I… Just tell you… That I'm fine?"

"Do me a favor and shut up," I tell him, my voice wavering a little. My left shoulder is already drenched in his blood. I need to hurry if I want him to stay alive.

* * *

"Whoa! What the hell did you do him?" Jibanbō asks me in a slightly panicked voice.

"He started it, but that's not the point. I need you to get help," I say, trying to keep calm. Kenpachi lost consciousness not too long ago and it's left me a little spooked. I slowly lower him on the ground, hoping he's not dead. He winces when my hand accidently brushes against his torso and I let out a shaky sigh. I close my eyes and bow my head. I feel my hair form a curtain around my face.

"You two need to get him onto that stretcher," I hear Isane order.

"Yes, vice captain," two men say in perfect sync.

"Ichigo-san? Are you OK?" Hanataro asks me as he places a hand on my shoulder.

"I'm fine," I snap at him, immediately feeling guilty. "I… I'm sorry."

"It's OK," he says, worry in his voice. I doubt he's noticed my condition and that makes me a little glad.

"Kurosaki-san, can you please come with me?" Isane asks me.

"Do I have to?" I ask her.

"Please? Captain will probably get angry with me if she found out that I let you leave without letting her look at you," She tells me.

I sigh. "I don't want to, but I guess I have no choice in the matter."

"Thank you, Kurosaki-san," she says before grabbing my hand and pulling me up. "Hanataro, could you please go with Sasuke and Honda?"

"Sure," he replies.

"You're blind, aren't you?" she asks after the three leave with Kenpachi in tow.

"How did you know?" I ask her.

"Your movements are very cautious, not to mention the fact that your eyes have remained closed since before we got here," she replies. "Now could you please come with me to the barracks?"

I don't answer but she guilds me through the huge gates leading into the Seireitei regardless.

* * *

**ME: Yes! After all this time, I've finally updated! YAHOOOOOOOOOOOO!**

**ICHIGO: And you've only gotten crazier.**

**ME: Meanie *sticks out tongue***

**ICHIGO: She's making faces at me, isn't she?**

**TOGETHER: REVIEW! **


End file.
